Bay Area Companies Win Big at the 2014 Good Food Awards

The Good Food Awards is in its fourth year recognizing and celebrating responsible, tasty food from around the country. This year's ceremony took place at the Palace of Fine Arts on Thursday, January 16. Photo: Kate Williams

Sarah Weiner, founder of Seedling Projects and the Good Food Awards, spoke on the revolutionary nature of food at the gala on Thursday, January 16. Photo: Kate Williams

In its fourth year, the Good Food Awards are an indication of the explosion of support for local, sustainable foodways. They aim to honor “people who make food that is delicious, respectful of the environment, and connected to communities and cultural traditions” by providing a space to recognize hard work by food producers across the country. The awards are organized by Seedling Projects, a small group of thinkers and doers led by Alice Waters protégé Sarah Weiner and marketing leader Dominic Phillips, who work to “promote collaboration within the food movement, build public demand for Good Food, and create new leaders for the sustainable food movement.”

Winners from the Western region were available for tasting at the gala and included Fra'Mani's Salame Calabrese, Bellwether Farm's Ricotta, Point Reyes Farmstead's Toma, Wine Forest's Pickled Sea Beans, and Mimi's Confitures' Onion Jam. Photo: Kate Williams

The celebration spanned three days this year, starting with the awards ceremony and gala on Thursday night and running through Saturday’s marketplace at the Ferry Plaza. Yet the contest began much earlier, with entries pouring in starting last July. In September, an impressive list of judges, including local figures like Bi-Rite’s Liz Rubin, dessert wiz Alice Medrich, Linea Caffee’s Andrew Barnett, chef Samin Nosrat, and Eat Real’s Marcy Coburn, met to whittle down the contestants. Entrants are judged based on three core principles: food must be tasty, authentic, and responsible. And while these tenets mean different things for different categories, a clear pattern of sustainable sourcing and conscious production is present in all of the winners.

Alice Waters and Ruth Reichl handed out the medals to the winners.

Thursday night’s gala was a boisterous fete. The ceremony was headlined by Dr. Zeke Emanuel, the co-creator of the White House Farmer’s Market, and Nell Newman, of Newman’s Own Organics. Ruth Reichl and Alice Waters handed out medals to the winners. Otherwise, speeches were limited to winners from each category, each with a pithy story or two on the nature of sustainable business. After the awards were presented, guests were invited to sample dishes featuring winning products prepared by local chefs like Greens’ Annie Sommerville and Bluestem’s Francis Hogan.

Nell Newman was the keynote speaker at the Good Food Awards ceremony on Thursday, January 16. Photo: Kate Williams

This year, oils were added to the list of nine categories for judging. Not surprisingly, California dominated the category, with most olive oil winners coming from the central and northern parts of the state. Tallgrass Ranch, from Sonoma County, won for their Estate Blend of Tuscan olives (Leccino, Frantoio, Pendolino, and Moriaolo) and a milder French olive (Coumella). The oil is balanced, grassy, and a fine example of the creativity in California oil production.

Jeff Martin, of Frantoio Grove, won for his single varietal oil made from Frantoio olives. His oil is unique in the sea of Spanish-style oils currently popular in the state. Photo: Kate WilliamsOther local oil winners were Tallgrass Ranch, Moonshadow Grove, and Jovia Groves. Photo: Kate William

Of the nine other categories—beer, charcuterie, cheese, chocolate, coffee, confections, pickles, preserves, and spirits—the Bay had a notable presence in both coffee and confections. Three of the 14 winners in coffee were local companies. De La Paz took honors for both their Kenya Gichathaini and their Peel Sessions Blend, Sightglass Coffee was recognized for their Ethiopia Guji Yetabe, and Healdsburg’s Flying Goat won for their Ethiopia Wote Konga.

Head roaster Shark Senesac of De La Paz prepares some of their award-winning Kenya Gichathaini for Marketplace guests. Photo: Kate Williams

On the sweeter side of things, local candy makers Coco Delice from Emeryville, and Feve and Nosh This from San Francisco took home awards for their small, yet boldly flavored chocolate filled with everything from beer to bacon. Bar chocolate from Guittard (an intense 100% bar of blended beans) and Humbolt’s Dick Taylor (a fruity, single-origin 72% bar with beans sourced from Belize) were honored among a strong category of contenders from states as far-flung as Vermont, Hawaii, and North Carolina.

Amy Guittard shows off their 100% cocoa bar, the only San Francisco-area chocolate to win a Good Food Award this year. Photo: Kate Williams